Businesses that practice diversity, equity and inclusion outperform those that don’t; yet what do these terms signify?
To understand it all better, keep these definitions in mind: Diversity refers to the range of demographics present within an organization while inclusion occurs when members from those demographics feel welcome, respected and supported in order to fully participate.
Diversity
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are three essential concepts to organizational effectiveness. DEI encompasses differences among people on multiple dimensions – race, sex, gender, education, religion, ability and sexual orientation being among them. Although each term carries its own specific meaning, all three terms work in concert to form an effective DEI strategy; as a starting point each team should hold an individual discussion to define each term independently before using this knowledge to plan an inclusion strategy together.
Traditionalists use “diversity” to refer only to racial and ethnic differences; however, in reality it encompasses much broader areas like language, manners and culture differences as well as social roles, gender identities, sexual orientation and more. Recently some advocates have even advocated for recognition of neurodiversity – the wide array of differences found across brain function.
Diversity can be an excellent starting point, but it does not automatically lead to inclusion. Diversity on its own does not create an inclusive workplace that fosters employee comfort; for this to occur it requires the creation of an inclusive culture – which involves learning and growing together so all employees feel valued for their unique differences and feel they belong in it. This type of culture is commonly known as belonging culture.
As part of their efforts to move beyond diversity and encourage belonging, companies should recognize the emotional cost that employees of marginalized individuals must bear daily in order to feel welcome, safe, and appreciated. To properly address this emotional cost, businesses should acknowledge its significance by investing in a diversity and inclusion framework.
Diversity and inclusion in the workplace is increasingly being recognized for its benefits. Studies demonstrate that diverse teams are more innovative, produce higher-quality products, and outperform homogenous counterparts financially compared with their homogenous counterparts. A McKinsey study determined that companies with more women in executive leadership were 36 percent more likely to outshone industry peers when it came to profitability.
Equity
Diversity, equity and inclusion are often used interchangeably in the workplace; however they each represent distinct concepts with distinct functions within organizations. “Diversity” encompasses differences in demographic characteristics like race, sex, age and gender as well as religion, education status socioeconomic status as well as mental and physical abilities of people compared with each other; inclusion is about cultivating an environment that embraces these differences while making sure each individual feels valued and connected with.
Inclusion refers to addressing disparities that arise when different groups are treated unequally, such as discrimination, unconscious bias and microaggressions based on differences among people. The goal of inclusion is to ensure all employees can reach their full potential without bias or discrimination at play in their workplace environment.
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) strategies are beneficial for business; research shows that companies with diverse employees perform better. A DEI initiative also serves to build relationships with customers, employees and shareholders while helping attract and retain top talent.
But it is critical to recognize that DEI initiatives cannot succeed without being underpinned by an organization-wide commitment to inclusion and equity. Focusing solely on diversity will not work; any attempt at diversification that fails to foster an inclusive environment will simply waste resources.
An essential aspect of diversity and equity in the workplace is having leadership that promotes an inclusive and diverse atmosphere, including hiring diverse members into positions of authority (board members or managers) as well as training employees on diversity issues such as equity and inclusion.
Also essential is having a DEI Champion for each department or division within your company. These individuals should care deeply about the work, either due to personal experience or commitment as an ally, and be knowledgeable of local diversity, equity and inclusion landscapes and be able to offer suggestions on incorporating an effective strategy within your organization.
Inclusion
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) can be difficult for many people to comprehend. By understanding what differentiates each term of DEI more clearly, companies can develop more effective strategies to promote DEI in their workplaces.
At times, organizations may prioritize diversity over equity and inclusion; however, placing too much weight on either of these concepts can result in unfavorable outcomes for some groups, including people with disabilities or minorities of different races or ethnicities. In order to avoid this scenario, organizations should take care to consider all forms of diversity within their workforces such as race, ethnicity, gender identity/expression/sexual orientation/neurodiversity – not only when selecting staff.
An effective way of visualizing differences in society is using a pie chart. By comparing the size of each slice with its proportional relationship to population size, it becomes apparent that more pieces belong to white people than people of color; this indicates a system which favors those who already have advantages; equity seeks to correct this inequality by guaranteeing access for everyone to resources and opportunities available to them.
Inclusion means creating an environment in which everyone feels accepted and valued regardless of any differences, be they external or internal. This can be accomplished through recognizing cultural diversity, rewriting implicit biases, or challenging the notion that different is inferior. Ultimately, inclusion completes DEI, providing an environment in which people can truly be themselves at work while reaching their maximum potential.
Companies that prioritize employee retention will need to measure and set goals for improvement, whether this involves diversity surveys, workshops, training programs or using tools like Findem to monitor diversity in the workplace. Such tools allow organizations to track metrics related to percentage of individuals from each group in their talent pool in order to find new ways of recruiting and retaining diverse candidates.
Belonging
Belonging is the feeling that people have an emotional bond with one another, whether this connection be founded upon shared values, purpose or experience. Belonging is a subjective, qualitative concept and researchers use various theories to explore it. While some research may focus more on individuals belonging while others look at its effects on larger groups and society more broadly – regardless of approach belonging is an integral component of workplace environments and can be positively affected through diversity, inclusion and equity initiatives.
Diverse and inclusive workplaces can increase employees’ sense of belonging and lead to enhanced performance at work, but many companies find it challenging to do this effectively. It is, however, possible to do this through taking an inclusive approach which includes diversity, equity and inclusion as core principles of management.
Diversity refers to all of the individual traits and characteristics that make each person distinctive, such as race, gender, age, national origin, religion, socioeconomic status, education level and language skills. Diversity encompasses cultural, physical and cognitive differences. To embrace and welcome these differences requires commitment from leadership as well as training programs for employees in order to help them feel valued as individuals. Inclusion refers to welcoming these differences with open arms while actively accepting differences through proactive processes that provide training support allowing employees to feel they belong as valued contributors in society.
Equality is the concept that all individuals should have equal access to opportunities regardless of their circumstances, yet this ideal may be difficult to attain in an unequal world. Equity seeks to balance this imbalance by offering more opportunities to groups who historically had less access.
Diversity and inclusion strategies are critical for business success; however, assessing their efficacy can be tricky. To make sure your efforts are achieving results, identify any obstacles which are impeding their expansion; such as hiring biases, limited outreach activities or insufficient mentoring programs.
To properly assess your organization’s progress, it is necessary to set goals and develop a measurement system. Begin by asking team members what they currently understand by diversity, equity and inclusion; have them record this information privately before gathering the results as a group discussion. Once there is consensus among team members on this matter, start creating your diversity and inclusion strategy.